魏明帝青龙元年八月，诏宫官牵车，西取汉孝武捧露盘仙人，欲立致前殿。宫官既拆盘，仙人临载，乃潸然泪下。唐诸王孙李长吉遂作《金铜仙人辞汉歌》。
茂陵刘郎秋风客，夜闻马嘶晓无迹。 画栏桂树悬秋香，三十六宫土花碧。 魏官舝车指千里，东关酸风射眸子。 空将汉月出宫门，忆君清泪如铅水。 衰兰送客咸阳道，天若有情天亦老。 携盘独出月荒凉，渭城已远波声小。
Song of the Bronze Statue Li
He
In the eighth month of the first
year of the Qinglong era, during the reign of Emperor Ming of Wei, the court
ordered a palace officer to ride west and bring back the gilded bronze figure
of an immortal holding a disc to catch dew made during the reign of Emperor Wu
of Han, in order to set it up in the front court. When the palace officer
removed the disc and took the statue to his carriage, the bronze figure shed
tears. So Li Changji, descended from a prince of the House of Tang, wrote this
song.
Gone
that emperor of Maoling, Rider
through the autumn wind, Whose
horse neighs at night And
has passed without trace by dawn. The
fragrance of autumn lingers still On
those cassia trees by painted galleries, But
on every palace hall the green moss grows. As
Wei’s envoy sets out to drive a thousand li The
keen wind at the East Gate stings the statue’s eyes… From
the ruined palace he brings nothing forth But
the moon-shaped disc of Han, True
to his lord, he sheds leaden tears, And
withered orchids by the Xianyang Road See
the traveler on his way. Ah,
if Heaven had a feeling heart, it too must grow old! He
bears the disc off alone By
the light of a desolate moon, The
town far behind him, muted its lapping waves.
（中国文学出版社 译）
The Song of the Bronze Immortal
Statue Leaving the Former Capital (with the author’s preface) Li
He
In August of the first year in
the rein of Emperor Ming of Wei Dynasty, some eunuchs were ordered to have the
great Bronze Immortal Statue with a plate collecting dewdrops shifted to the
new capital city of Luoyang, and set it up in front of the new palace. The
statue had been built by Emperor Han Wu (156-87BC) of Han Dynasty (206BC-220AD).
When the plate for collecting dewdrops was taken down from the statue for transportation,
the statue was said to shed tears. Li He, a prince’s descendant, sighed over it
and wrote the following poem.
Could
Emperor Han Wu 1 chant his Ode to Autumn Wind in his resting place? Horses
neighed at night, whereas they at dawn left no trace. Osmanthus
by the painted railings filled the air with fragrance; Regrettable
that everywhere in the former palace moss grew in luxuriance. Now,
the eunuchs were to take the bronze statue a thousand miles away; At
the east gate, the bronze statue felt sad, and wept as people would say. Seeing
him off the palace gate was the moon alone, faithful as ever; In
tears the immortal recalled the late emperor’s 2 longevity endeavor. Along
the road outside the deserted capital 3, wilted orchids seemed
reluctant to part; Heaven
would pass from youth to age, had it sentiments in heart. But
the statue was too heavy to carry, only the plate moved on, in bleak moonlight; As
the roaring Weihe River 4 faded away, the former capital was out of
sight.
1.
Emperor’s Ming of Wei Dynasty refers to Cao Rui (205-239AD), grandson of Cao
Cao (155-220AD). 2.
The late emperor refers to Emperor Han Wu (156BC-87BC). 3.
The deserted capital refers to Xianyang, today’s Xi’an. 4.
The Weihe River is the longest branch of the Yellow River. It flows across
Shanxi Province.
（卢炳群 译） |
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